Tag Archives: calgary

Gluten-free peeps, rejoice for the coming of the great cinnamons sugar donut is here and it is baked, and ready for the eating! This is one of those moments whilst they were baking that I wished very hard for smell-o-blogging but oh well I am sure it will come soon enough for now you’ll just have to make these cinnamon babies for yourselves to find out just how good they smell and taste!

These donuts are also ridiculously easy to make dairy free (I used unsweetened vanilla almond milk in mine), you can also sub white sugar for a less refined sugar like coconut sugar! This recipe yields 12 donuts.

Okay, so this salad was born out of a rad trip to the Calgary Farmers Market this weekend. I have to give a huge shout out to the Cherry Pit for their amazing pre-shredded cabbage, carrots and amazing bunches of kale and cilantro, as well to Bee Land for your amazing honey! Spring time is always amazing for finding fresh inspiration and healthy eats.

For the Amber Approved Magazine winter edition, I decided that a sweet and spicy dessert was in order and my chili chocolate torte came to be. The spice and cocoa will get those endorphins going in no time! As an added bonus it is dairy AND refined sugar free.

Ingredients:

3 ounces of dark chocolate (I prefer to use enjoy life foods as they are certified gluten and dairy free)

Once coconut oil and chocolate are melted, remove from heat and let cool for 1 minute, then add in your eggs, cacao powder, cayenne pepper, salt, coconut sugar, and whisk until the mixture is nice and smooth.

Pour into your prepared cake pan and allow to bake on the middle wrack for about 25-30 minutes

Allow to cool in pan for 10 minutes and the flip out onto a wire wrack to finish cooling (this can be served warm if desired). Top with a light dusting cacao powder and serve.

So part of going gluten-free is breaking up with your favourite restaurant foods…one of mine just happened to be the red lobster biscuits. After several years of trying to convince myself that I was better off without them, I could not lie to myself anymore. Last night my mom for sunday supper had bought a box of gluten-free Bisquick mix for biscuits to go with our pot roast. We got creative and added in some cheese and some garlic butter and we found ourselves no longer yearning for our red lobster biscuits, because we have found them!

These biscuits are super quick and easy to make and cheap (hello, Bisquick is inexpensive, and a huge time saver!).

Enjoy,

ingredients:

1 box of gluten-free bisquick, (follow package directions for the biscuits on the back of the box, this will require 2 cups of gluten-free bisquick, 3 eggs, 1/3 cup of shortening and 2/3 cup of milk)

1.5 cups of old aged cheddar cheese, shredded

1/4 cup of garlic butter melted, to brush the tops*

Method:

Prepare the biscuit dough as per package directions, shred cheese and fold into the biscuit dough, bake as per package directions.

Once out of the oven, while the biscuits are still hot brush the melted garlic butter over the biscuits and enjoy!

* Garlic butter can bought at the grocery store next to where the regular butter is sold or you can make your own by combing 1/4 cup of softened salted butter with 2 cloves of minced garlic and a teaspoon of either fresh or dried parsley, stir, melt and enjoy!

Christmas is my favourite holiday season, the sense of community mixed with all of the warmth and buzz throughout the city is intoxicating. So this year I have decided to bring you all a series of holiday related features that will be sure to bring anyone some cheer!

My first feature is a list of my 6 Christmas market picks for the holiday season! These are always a lot of fun because they host an array of handmade items and you can find some really neat christmas gift ideas or decor, can’t make one of them? some of them have multiple dates they are running!

MillarVille Christmas Market November 10th-13th – With so many fun activities (some of which include sleigh rides) there is so much to love about this christmas market. I have gone to this market several times over the years and am never sorry I did! Adult admission is $5 dollars/person, children under 12 and people over 65 are free of charge. for more information visit their website here.

Okotoks Christmas Festival November 11th-13th – showcasing tons of artisan crafts, and photos with Santa, this is truly a great kickoff to the season and a wonderful place to get a head start on your holiday shopping. $5 dollars per person to enter, for more details check out the website here.

Spruce Meadows International Christmas MarketNovember 18-20 | November 25-27 | December 2-4 – this is one of Alberta’s largest christmas market with it boasting over 250 vendors and joyful entertainment to get you into the christmas spirit. This is one not to miss out on. Tickets are required so be sure to check out the website by clicking here.

Canmore Christmas Artisans Market November 19-20- I am always looking for a good excuse to get away to the mountains and this is one of them! With 75 local vendors this is a christmas market not to miss, fit it in on a visit to Canmore’s 100% gluten-free restaurant the Wild Orchid Bistro for a wonderful gluten free date! tickets are $3.00 for more details clicks here.

Market Collective Cheer
November 25-27 | December 2-4 | December 9-11 | December 16-18 – this is one market not to miss and with so many dates to choose from there is no excuse to check out the Market Collective Cheer at the Chinese Cultural Centre. Food, Art, Music, Bath & Body and SO much more. For more details visit their website here.

Thank you so much for reading, and please stay tuned for each Wednesday from now and until December 21st there will be more holiday recipes, tips, tricks and much more!

Fall is such an amazing season to experiment with thyme, rosemary and garlic and root vegetables! I love this recipe because you only need about a 1/2 the butternut squash and you can freeze the other half for a future recipe or soup! I always make this in a foil pan for easy clean up! This recipe is easy peasy and the pork is tender and delicious!

Enjoy!

Ingredients

1 pound of butternut squash peeled and cut into about 2 inch chunks

2 parsnips cut into chunks

2 carrots cut into chunks

About a pound of baby potatoes halved (or russet peeled and quartered)

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 tablespoon fresh rosemary

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 1/2 teaspoon Salt

3/4 teaspoon pepper

Method:

Toss veggies in a roasting pan with 2 tablespoons of olive oil, and salt and pepper to taste.

Combine 1 tablespoon of fresh chopped rosemary (dried will also work) and 2 large cloves of garlic minced and 3/4 tsp of salt and 1 teaspoon black pepper and rub onto the roast.

Place roast in roaster with the veggies and cook at 450 degrees for about 45 minutes-1 hour or until a meat thermometer reads 160 degrees Fahrenheit.

I fell for pumpkin spice many moons ago and while many people have adopted fall as being the season of “pumpkin spice” I still had yet to really hone my own pumpkin spice bread recipe, that is until today!

In celebration of the first day of fall I decide to play with my family recipe for banana loaf, which I realized made the perfect base to play with, take out bananas, add in a little pure pumpkin puree, and a little unsweetened apple sauce and some pumpkin spice and you have the perfectly balanced spiced pumkin loaf recipe!

In a large bowl combine all dry ingredients: flour, xanthan gum, baking soda, baking powder, and salt whisk to combine and set aside.

In a medium bowl cream eggs and coconut sugar together and then add oil, vanilla, cinnamon, pumpkin spice, pumpkin puree and apple sauce, stirring to combine.

Add wet ingredients into the dry ingredients, stirring them until just combined (DO NOT OVER MIX: gluten-free batters get tough when over mixed, keep it light)

Fold in chopped pecans, and in a greased 9×5 loaf pan and put into a preheated 350° fahrenheit oven and bake for 45-55 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the centre of the loaf comes out clean.

Allow to cool in pan for 5 minutes and then transfer to a wire rack until completely cool.